Gary Kayye's exclusive article "InFocus Is Getting Out of the Projector and Display Business (Updated)" tells the story in a headline.
No one expected this from InFocus, the pioneer manufacturer of computer projectors. As recently as ISE 2019, the company was still launching new LED and laser projector lines, plus new models for business and education—and even re-introducing their ScreenPlay projector line for the residential market.
Now not only is InFocus getting out of the projection and display business but according to Kayye they’ve already begun laying off a majority of their 128 global employees (68 waiting to see if they get “pink slips” are based in the Portland metro area in Oregon, USA).
At its peak in 2000, the publicly-held company employed more than 1200 in Oregon and reached nearly $900 million in revenue. It fell on hard times and went private in May 2009 after being purchased for $39 million by John Liu.
Randy Arnold, current President of InFocus Corp., issued an extremely short statement yesterday: “InFocus Corporation is pivoting its strategic business model which has resulted in a worldwide workforce reduction this week. The company will continue to offer support to channel customers for current and past generation InFocus products.”
And-- after that-- Arnold went dark, presumably fully occupied making the moves he believes will save the future of the company. And in his silence, even the local newspapers in their home state of Oregon have had to cite from and quote from Gary Kayye's rAVe article as the primary and original source of this industry news.
Arnold has been with InFocus for about 8 years, mainly in finance and operations until his promotion to President exactly one year ago this April.
Before that Mark Housley, an InFocus board member who joined with the buyout in 2009, was running the company as CEO.
The Housley plan was to become a leader with creative solutions in the growing market where IT hits AV: collaboration in large venues, conference rooms, classrooms and workstations throughout the world.
Under Housley, InFocus bought three companies: in 2015 the company purchased Jupiter Systems, in 2016 California software company Avistar (Avistar’s technology is already integrated into InFocus’ Mondopad video conferencing system and the company’s calling service ConX) and in late 2016 VIDCO in Germany.
InFocus pioneered projector technology starting with a liquid-crystal display placed atop an overhead projector. It controlled 80% of the market in its first four years, a legend in its time.
InFocus was known as the creator of the digital projector market. Many firsts followed, including the first DLP projector, the first sub-five-pound projector, the first ultra-thin projection television, the first all-in-one interactive whiteboard with touch technology and videoconferencing, and more…
In 1999, InFocus purchased PROXIMA in a debacle that became an example of an acquisition gone wrong.
And now? What will be the focus for InFocus? We don’t yet have enough information but if you take away all the projectors, touchscreens and display-related products (what about Jupiter?), you are left with only Avitar’s cloud and software business.